Challenges of Nations
by Anarchy Duck
Summary: 100 one-shot's/drabbles based around a single theme.
1. Illusion

_**45. Illusion **_

_Character(s): Prussia_

_Info: Prussia's thoughts after he is dissolved as a nation._

_Dissolution._

At first, I didn't really understand what this meant. I mean… they couldn't be talking about _ME_. I'm too awesome and cool for something like that! They can't just break me apart like that. Yet, deep within, I knew it. Or, at least I think I did. Looking back, I don't think it sank in just yet. Not until I was forced to go live with Russia, that damn bastard.

West tried talking them out of it but those bastard Allies wouldn't have it.

_Germany had to be separated._

Therefore, I was dissolved, my rights as a nation taken away with just a few words and a couple of signatures.

Before now, I had been living with West and helping him with the war. It was fun really, living with my little brother and torturing Italy practically every day. I mean, every job had it's quirks, right?

Thanks to West's boss, I had already lost most of my rights but, you know, that really didn't both me that much. I was still living with Ludwig, as I always had been, and I still had my say in a few things.

This, however, this was totally different.

Being dissolved meant I wasn't a nation anymore. I was nothing.

It really hit me hard after I went to live with Russia. That son of a bitch… he took my land, controlled my people and even set up a fucking wall to separate me and Ludwig! He kept me isolated from everyone, locked down in his basement or something. I don't know for sure but I do know that it was dark. He kept me down there for so long that I… I began to question it.

My status.

If I wasn't a nation or country anymore, what exactly did that mean? I was still alive, living and breathing but I wasn't anything. I'm not human so I can't go out and pretend I am one. Why should I stoop to their level anyway? I'm too…. too….

What was I?

I can't remember anymore. Being locked down here for so long… I… I can't remember! What's going on? I know I was something, at one time I was something great and powerful. No one could touch me! But now… look at me. I'm just fading away, slowly dying in Ivan's house.

"It's a shame your already fading away, da. I would have liked to keep Prussia with me for a little while longer."

That's what Ivan would say to me. I was fading? How? Why?! I was too great to fade away!

That's a lie. If I was really that great, than I wouldn't be in this situation right now, now would I? No. I'd be back where I was supposed to… wherever that was. I would be back with those people, the ones who are in my dreams sometimes. I can't see their faces and their voices are muffled but they are familiar to me. I knew them at one time.

"Are you sure? They could just be tricks… Your feeble little mind could be playing with you, da."

What is Ivan was right? What if these dreams were nothing but dreams? Fabrications of my decaying mind? Just illusions that were supposed to dull the pain and send me back to a life where I was great, where I was something.

I want these dreams to come back and take me away. Take me away so I can be Prussia again… take me…

0000000

_NOTES_

_1) __West__ - this is the nickname that Prussia calls Germany (Ludwig)_

_2) After WWII, Prussia was dissolved it's provinces were given to the Soviet Union (aka Russia)_

_3) __"Thanks to West's boss, I had already lost most of my rights but, you know, that really didn't both me that much. I was still living with Ludwig…" __--- In 1934, Prussia was abolished de fecto (meaning "by [the] fact" or "in practice but not ordained by law) as a state by the Nazis. In 1947, it was abolished by de jure ("concerning law") by the Allies. _


	2. Night

**32. Night**

_Character(s): England_

_Summery: During the Blitz, England stands at his window, only able to observe._

It came almost unexpected.

We knew it was only a matter of time before it happened but… I still couldn't believe it. I knew this was war and I had been preparing for this. The possibility of an attack was eminent. After the Battle of Britain, I knew it would only be a matter of time before Germany tried again.

Bomb shelters were built and children were sent out to the country-side, so they would be safe. Soldiers were still being recruited and it would be two weeks before I could join them in the front lines. As horrid as it sounded, my body yearned for battle, for conflict. I wanted to get out there and show these Germans the might of Britannia.

Right now, however, I was too preoccupied with the politics at home. My boss didn't want me going out into the front lines, worried about the consequences if I were found out. After all, according to the world, I didn't officially exist.

Our General thought otherwise, saying that having me on the field would be a good moral boost of the men. I agreed and, besides, I had survived hundreds of battles before. This one wouldn't be any different from those.

As I waited for approval to head out, I watched the city. It was torturous to just sit and wait. I was restless and would occasionally go wander the streets, just trying to clear my head. I did this for several days, until the day the bombers came.

I didn't need to hear about it - I could feel it. A stabbing pain in my heart, one that nearly made me crumble to my knees. London was heart and, whenever the city was hurt, so was I.

The bombing had begun.

It went on for several days. London was dreadfully unprepared. There were few anti-aircraft guns with fire-control systems and the lights couldn't pierce the darkness of the night to see the bombers.

At first, the bombs fell both night and day but, soon, they only came at night. I felt each one of them. It was like someone had shoved a blade into my heart and was slowly twisting it, scarring me. My house shook, pictures and breakables falling to the floor as the bombs hit the earth. I didn't care and I even stood by the window, watching as the planes flew overhead.

I could do nothing.

My people were dying. The buildings and homes were being destroyed. Never had I felt so powerless. I have staved off invasions before but, with out limited resources, it was harder this time. I couldn't go out there, unsheathe my sword and cry out in fury as I charged at those who dared try to invade my land. This invasion came from the air, a place where I couldn't physically reach.

To make it worse, those cowards attacked at night. The black sky masked their planes as they flew overhead. Sometimes, I almost wish they would try to enter my land, to try and take it. Let them try.

They may attack under the light of the moon but I will attack with the sun. I will not cower here in my home, no. The moment I am able, I will be on the front lines, fighting alongside our soldiers. So let them send their bombs; we will chase them out. Let them try to cross the sea; we will blast them out of the water.

This pain is great but it is not enough to cripple me. I will continue on and, once I am able to enter the battle, there will be hell to pay. These attacks will not be ignored.

Another bomb falls and fires erupt in it's wake, bringing down several buildings just down the road from my own home. The pain strikes me again but it is not as bad. I know this street is empty. Everyone who once lived here have fled away, to another part of London or to the country-side. As long as my people live on, everything is fine. I can endure as much pain as needed, just as long as my children continue to live.

Come morning, I will be gone as well but not to the country. No, I will be joining the front lines, leading the boys into battle. I will show Germany the nation that Rome could not hold, that France and Spain could not conquer.

I only need to last through the night.


	3. Words

_80. Words_

_**Character: America **_

_October 3rd__, 1776_

_I saw a boy die today. He was part of the militia couldn't be anymore than fifteen years old. A Redcoat caught him while we faced them off in a field outside of a little town I can't remember. I didn't know his name or where he came from but I know one thing. _

_He died for liberty, for freedom. For America. _

_They all died for America… for me. _

_America… it was only a title England gave to me. It was only a name on the map, a place where people could find acceptance and begin a new life. Before now, the name America was just another name for me. _

_Now… now it means something more. It is freedom. It is a place of liberty. It is a place of tolerance. It will be a place where people will one day look up to. No, not a place… I am not a place. That is ridicules. Clearly I have been with the other men too long. No one here knows that I am America. I am just another solider of the regular army. Only the higher ups know. General Washington suggested that I keep it a secret, at least until the war is over. He and the others fear of what would happen if I were captured or killed. Apparently they don't listen very well. I cannot be killed as easily as the other men. It's something England told me before. Nations are stronger than the average human being. I guess we have to be, if we're the personification of a country. _

_I never really understood what that meant until this war began. Not only am I the physical representation of America, I am also a representation of the people who live here. With every battle, I feel the pain of each casualty. When the land is hurt, I also hurt. When the people are in pain, I am also in pain. It is a pain that I will endure. _

_I want to be free of England. He only sees me as a child, or little brother. Someone small who he can rule over. Someone he can control. What he didn't understand was that I would soon grow weary of his bonds. It began with the taxes, and then the massacre in Boston. I wrote to England many times, telling him there wasn't a need for the increased military in the cities. However, he ignored my letters and my pleads. Finally, I realized he would always ignore them. _

_It was time to stand up, to stand against the very person who raised me. England… he meant so much to me. I looked up to him as a father and brother. I loved him dearly and perhaps I still do. But that love must be cast aside. _

_England has broken his promises. I cannot allow him to get away with this. _

_Even if I must face you on the battlefield, I will. I will not idly stand by and watch you tear me apart. I won't allow it. _

_I can hear the Coronal outside shouting now. The Redcoats have been spotted five miles off. Well, it's time to face the bastards. Let's see if I can inspire more heroes today. _

_Yours Truly,_

_Alfred F. Jones_

_United States of America_


	4. Fortitude

**20. Fortitude **

_Character: Matthew Williams (Canada)_

_Summary: Sometimes, you have to keep strong even when you want to give up. You have to keep strong and keep fighting._

Matthew was scared to death.

All this time, he had been able to hide the fact he was sick. No one, aside from his closest of friends, knew about the sickness but now he wouldn't be able to hide it.

He looked down at the clumps of soft blond hair in his hands, feeling the stinging of tears in his eyes as he stares at the strands. More lay on his pillow behind him but he doesn't want to look.

He wasn't vain. He could careless about his looks but waking up to see that, to see the painful truth just laying there, it hurt. It really hit him that this was real and, for a moment, he lost it. He broke down, holding the once silky strands on his hands as tears cascaded down his cheeks.

His father Arthur came in and was soon sitting next to him, holding Matthew as he tried to comfort the teen, holding back tears of his own. Matthew continued to hold the fallen hair in his hands as he leaned into the man's embrace. Alfred and Francis appeared in the doorway, staying there for a moment until Matthew calmed down enough to speak clearly. With their help, they cleaned up the bed, tossing away the fallen hair.

Matthew went into the bathroom and finally let go of the strands of hair in his hands. He looked up, catching his reflection in the mirror and it made him pause. Too pale skin, dark circles underneath his eyes which were now red from crying and, now his hair was beginning to show it's thinness. Timidly, he reached up, grasping a handful and pulled. More strands came out but he just tosses them.

It was just hair, right? When he gets better, it'll all grow back.

With that thought in mind, Matthew smiled slightly and exited the bathroom. It was about time he had a hair cut anyway.


	5. No Time

_Title: 24. No time_

_Characters: Veneziano & Romano_

_Disclaimer: Don't own Hetalia. _

_Notes: If you wish, listen to the song 'Come Tenderness' by Lisa Gerrard while you read this. _

A shot rang out and something warm sprayed across his face.

There was no time to think, to react, to whatever had hit him. Veneziano's eyes focused solely onto his brother as he jolted back. Suddenly time seemed to slow to an impossible rate.

Romano was falling. It was like watching a scene in a movie, the moment when everything seemed as though the heroes had won, only for the protagonist to suddenly struck down. Except this seemed all too real.

Veneziano couldn't move. Try as he might, he couldn't will his body to go forward, stretch out his arms and catch his brother as he fell. It felt as though he was made of marble and could only watch. Somewhere, he dimly was aware of a car speeding away and screaming. People around them scattered, though they seemed only a blur to him.

Romano hit the ground with a solid thud and he remained there unmoving. Blood pooled around his head, slowly forming a reddened halo. His eyes, hazel green that burned bright with raging emotion, were half-mast, staring unseeingly at the clouded sky.

Veneziano stared down at his brother's body, suddenly becoming aware of the droplets of blood across the side of his face. It was in his hair, his eyes, his mouth and it's taste was too familiar and yet too foreign. His brother, the other half of his heart and country, lie dead at his feet.

His fingers tingled and twitched. He could suddenly hear his heart racing, feel his breath quickening and his eyes beginning to burn. His body trembled as the numbness that held in him in place was swept away.

Then, he let out a horrible scream.


End file.
